Present day electrostatographic copiers and printers can produce high quality black and white, and color images. An example of such an electrostatographic machine is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,126,797 which issued on Jun. 1992 in the name of Forest et al. These images, as perceived by the human eye, are approaching the quality of images created by conventional photographic processes. It is desirable to be able to electrostatographically make "photographic look and feel" images (colorgraphs) because this process is quick, dry, and produces stable images.
Photographic prints are on stiffer stock largely because of the way they are handled by the consumer. It is easier to handle prints which are on photographic weight paper than prints which are on copier/printer weight paper. In addition, the stiffer stock is much more durable than regular paper and allows photographic prints to last a long time. Thus, consumers have come to expect their photographic quality images to be located on a stiff support.
Unfortunately, many electrostatographic reproduction apparatus have paper paths which bend the receiver sheet around rollers having small diameters. Such an apparatus is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,162,874 which issued on Nov. 10, 1992 in the name of Butler. There is a limit to the beam strength of receiver sheets which can be bent around these small rollers. If this limit is exceeded the receiver sheet will be damaged and/or there will be a paper jam in the apparatus. In addition, it becomes increasingly more difficult to secure receiver sheets to rollers by, for example vacuums, electrostatic forces and gripper fingers as the beam strength of the receiver sheet increases. As a result, it is difficult to create colorgraphs on an electrostatographic reproduction apparatus using receiver sheets having a rigidity similar to photographic paper.
A further problem is that many electrostatographic apparatus rely on electrostatic transfer to move toner images from a photoconductive or intermediate member to a receiver sheet. The electrostatic forces used in electrostatic transfer must be matched to the receiver sheet to which the toner image is being transferred. If such apparatus are to be able to create images on photographic weight paper as well as copier/printer weight paper the electrostatic forces will have to be varied depending on which weight paper is being used. This makes machine control more difficult. Further, the electrostatic process cannot be optimized for a single weight paper without limiting the output to a single weight paper.